Chicago evening papers of Wednesday published the account of the suicide
in New York City of a former Barrington boy, Gustav Blum, aged about 35, who enlisted in the U. S. Navy when he was about 18 years old. His only remaining relative in this community is Mrs. August Pahlke of the Schoppe farm, southeast of town, who is in Barrington today trying to get by telegraph more definite details of her half-brother's death.

The press item states that Mr. Blum shot his son John, aged 10 years, and daughter Elsie, aged 4 years, and then killed himself. Two weeks ago he wrote to Barrington telling of his hard life at present, for his wife has been in an insame aslym for a year and his children were boarding away from him.

He was very despondent because there seemed no hope of his wife recovering her reason; her grandmother and other relatives were also insane.

Mr. Blum was born in Germany but came to Barrington when a young boy with his mother, Mrs. Matilda Schumacher; who lived on North Hawley street and died four years ago. He always called in Barrington when on shore leave and was here to his mother's funeral.

For several years he had been stationed, as secretary, on the U. S. S. Granite, at the foot of 96th Street, New York harbor. He is favorably remembered here and old friends are sorry that life for him was so tragic. He always took the home paper and kept track of Barrington affairs.

I am sure this is not a complete list, but it covers the genealogy related items that I back up.

High Tech Back Ups

I research on two computers, my laptop and a workstation. While this is not always the most efficient method, it is what it is.

About 4 years ago I started using an online back up service called Carbonite. Carbonite is as simple as selecting the directories and/or files to back up and Carbonite backs it up whenever there is a change. If you buy a new computer or reload your current computer Carbonite will restore all your files with a click of a button. EASY!

Another online backup system is Mozy. Mozy is free if you only have 2 gig of data to back up. This can be an easy way to try it and see if you like it.

The best thing about either of these systems is that your data is 'off site'. If your home is damaged and your computer equipment is lost or damaged your data is safely stored on a server in a secure location and can be retrieved whenever you want it back.

Medium Tech Back Ups
Many people use external hard drives to back up their data. This can be an automated process or something that you do yourself periodically.

Here are a couple of examples.

Buying a hard drive such as ClickFree Automatic Home Backup will back up data as it changes. The only problem is that the harddrive is in your home, so if your home is lost, so is the hard drive backup.

Another popular product currently is Dropbox. Using Dropbox straight out of the 'box' allows you to share files by adding them to a Dropbox folder on your system. It will then copy or synchronize them to other computers you have designated. This is a manual process.

I did a little research and it appears there are some third party tools that can automate the process. On the plus side, your data is stored offline, so if your equipment is lost or damaged the data is not lost.

Google Docs, Flickr, and other online sharing sites might be an option for your family photos, Word files, pdf's and such. There are limits to the amount of data you can store, so be sure you will have the capacity you need. While it may take a while to upload the data it will be there waiting for you whenever you need them.

Low Tech Back Ups

One way to store your data off site is to simply make copies on either cd's, dvd's, or thumb drives and mail them to a relative in another state. This could be done once or twice a year for a minimal cost and accomplish 'off site' storage.

Before I used Carbonite I did this with family pictures I had scanned. I would bring cd's of the pictures with me when I visted my family in Illinois and leave them with my mom or sister.

No Tech Back Up

If you do not want to get involved with backing up, copying and such your options might be a bit limited.

In Florida where flooding is one of the biggest problems, storing your computers in water proof storage containers might be an option. There is usually plenty of time to prepare as we watch the storm system move towards the state.

Unfortunately, this is not the case for tornados or earthquakes, so some advance planning is needed. Printing out entire family trees with sources can be time consuming and the thought of rekeying them daunting.

So Now What?

I hope everyone who has read this article is thinking it was a total waste of time! Why, because they are already practicing good back up procedures.

If you are not backing up your data I hope this has given you some ideas of your options and you do some research.

Please leave comments on how you have accomplished this very important but often forgotten part of your genealogy research. I do not profess to be an expert on the subject, just someone who has tried a number of options and wanted to share them.

Tuesday, April 26, 2011

It happens about once a year, my mom decides that the house, basement or garage is too cluttered. Since I live in Florida and mom lives in Illinois I am not always close enough to stage an intervention. Thank goodness for my sister Mary.

Family Intervention

One year mom decided to start cutting up family pictures and make a collage, thank goodness my sister had already scanned them. At that point Mary scanned every picture in the house.

Another year when I was visiting she told me I might want to go through a box in the basement in the basement she was going to throw out. The box had wedding, graduation and family pictures of my aunts, uncles and cousins. The entire box went home on the plane with me.

Bunni Keteri Orloski, Sharyn and James Orloski- Photo Saved by Pattie

Genealogy Treasures in Your Own Back Yard

When was the last time you did genealogy research in your own home? How about your parents, grandparents, uncles or aunts? I had not seen my Aunt Sharon in over 40 years and was lucky enough to reconnect with her a couple of years ago.

Aunt Sharon's closet was full of obituaries, correspondance, photos of her trips to Finland, family pictures and hand written family trees. A genealogist goldmine.

If You Don't Ask...

As a genealogist we are not bashful about calling cemeteries, county clerks and other archivists - why not ask your family for help?

Here is a list of items that may be gathering dust on someone's shelf:

Sunday, April 24, 2011

The holidays always remind me how the world has changes since I was young. Holiday meals at Grandma Pahlke's demanded your best dress, ties and polished shoes. Aprons were worn while setting the tables (adult & children's) and cocktails were served to the adults. It was a special occasion from the time you woke up until everyone left with an extra piece of pie or leftover meat.

Mary and I in our Easter bonnets

For better or worse the holidays now are less formal, but just as filled with family traditions and meals. This Easter, Grandma Mary's method of cooking the Easter ham is a hot topic. Mary Steigerwald Schultz was Chuck's grandmother and a fantastic cook.

Grandma Mary's Ham Recipe

Decades ago Grandma Mary was at our house when I was preparing a ham for dinner. I was fussing with basting and covering it when she pulled me aside and told me her secret - 7Up. Forget covering it and basting, just open a bottle or can of 7Up and pour it over the ham.

Over the years I have made slight modifications to the recipe. I have found that using a roster, instead of the oven, steams it more and keeps it extra juicy. Also I have used Mountain Dew and Sprite not just 7Up but never diet pop.

Charles Jr, Mary, Charles Sr. and Carol Schultz

I have been fielding emails from friends and relatives this month to find out the 'secret' of the hams I serve at family gatherings. I have happily shared Grandma Mary's recipe and hope it is passed down through the generations.

Chicago and the 7Up Connection

The other day while picking out my ham I started up a conversation with a woman was also looking over the hams. She mentioned she was from Chicago and I laughed and said so was I. She casually asked how I prepared my ham and I chuckled and said 'with 7Up'. The look on her face was of pure shock - she said she also used 7UP and had never met anyone else who did!

Another Chicago 7(Up) Conspiracy? It truly is a small world!

eReader Update

A week or so ago I read an article about eBooks being more popular than paperbacks. eBooks? Ooops, I couldn't remember where my eReader even was! I brought it to Las Vegas, but had not seen it since I unpacked. I did track it down and remembered I had never finished "Decision Points" even though I truly was enjoying it.

I found that there was an firmware update for my eReader so I installed. I also updated my email options and some internet favorites but just could not get myself to start reading.

For some reason there is still something very foreign about reading a book on the eReader. Maybe I am just overloaded on technolgy in other areas of my life. Or maybe I am too old to 'learn a new trick'.

Mrs. Mathilda Schumacher of North Hawley Street died in Chicago at the German Evangelical Deaconess hospital at noon last Friday, January 9 and was brought to Barrington for burial. The funeral was held Sunday at St. Paul's Evangelical Chuch on Main Street with Rev. Eugene Wilking conducting the service. Interment was in Main Street Cemetery.

Mrs. Schumacher had been ill since last spring and was taken to Chicago on November 30 for an operation which could not be performed on account of her weak condition. She was suffering from cancer of the liver.

Two months ago her son, Gustav Blum, who is in the United States Navy and is stationed on the battleship, Granite State, at the foot of the 96th Street, New York City, came here to see his mother and with his sister Johanna Pahlke who lives east of town, decided to send the mother to the city for treatment. He then returned east. He arrived in Barrington again Sunday for the funeral.

Mathilda Muller Schumacher was born in Salzuften, Lippe-Detmond, Germany,
on August 18, 1848. When a young woman she was married to a Mr. Blum and they were parents of five children of whom three died when young. Mr. Blum died, and as a widow of 40 years, Mrs. Schumacher came to this country in October 1888. She has sinced lived in Barrington. For two years she was the wife of Henry Schumacher.

Besides the son and daughter mentioned the other relatives are six grandchildren, two in New York and the four Pahlke children.

The Grauenverein of St. Paul's Church, of which Mrs. Schumacher was the treasurer, attended the body.

Thursday, April 21, 2011

Family Gatherings
There are a few times a year when the entire family gathers around the dining room table and shares a meal. Everyone has a favorite main course, side dish or desert from their childhood. Mine was Grandma Pahlke's beef gravy, it was the best. My mother would try and try to make beef gravy like grandma's but there was always something missing. One day grandma told her to 'just add a little catsup' and WHAM! gravy as good as grandma's.

I also loved Grandma's German Potato Salad, Navy Bean and Ham Soup and the list could go on and on. Unfortunately I never had a chance to get the recipes. My mom learned how to make the Navy Bean soup but where would I find her German Potato Salad recipe?

The photo above is of three of my aunts. From left to right they are my Aunt Mabel (grandma's daughter), Aunt Ruth (grandma's daughter in law) and Aunt Sharon (my mother's sister - no relation to grandma).

A couple of years ago I was visiting Aunt Sharon and we were talking about Grandma Pahlke. Aunt Sharon had lived with Grandma when she first moved to Barrington and guess what - she had Grandma's German Potato Salad recipe! Why - because she asked for it!

Family Heritage Cookbooks

How do you start putting together a Family Heritage Cookbook? Just start asking for the recipes served at your family meals. But, more important asked about their history. Here are a few tips and suggestions to help you on your adventure.

* Start by finding a recipe template
* Personalize each recipe, consider adding a biography of the creator
* Review the recipes' instructions and ingredients to bring them current
* Request a picture of the submission
* Decide how to organize the recipes (by family, geography, or type)

If you cannot locate a favorite recipe of an ancestor check out ebay for church cookbooks; your ancestors or their neighbors my have contributed recipes.

What should you do after you have collected all the recipes? That is another article about self publishing!

Tuesday, April 19, 2011

With all the articles and programs about the 150th anniversary of the Civil War I almost missed another significant anniversary. Today is the 236th anniversary of the Battle of Lexington and Concord, the beginning of the Revolutionary War. If your ancestors were among the first settlers you may be connected to some of the most significant events in our history.

Below are some great websites to start learning more about the American Revolution and to start researching your Revolutionary ancestors.

My favorite book is no longer available on either Amazon or Barnes and Noble except from resellers (charging way too much!), but if you can find or borrow Patricia Hatcher Law's - Locating Your Roots: Discover Your Ancestors Using Land Records do so.

Vinton, la. E. E. Maish, 35, Cedar Rapids, was instantly killed about 9:30 p. m. Thursday, when the bicycle he was riding on highway 30, was struck by an automobile driven by Jerome Jameson, Los Angeles, Cal., on his honeymoon.

The accident occurred 18 miles west of Cedar Rapids. Maish and Jameson were both traveling east. Jameson told officers that he came over a hill and failed to see Maish, whose bicycle did not have a light, he said.

Maish suffered a skull fracture, broken neck and fractured ribs. His body was taken to Cedar Rapids. John Burrows, Benton county coroner, investigated the accident.

Cedar Rapids Tribune - May 22 1936
Bicyclist Killed By Auto

Eddie Maish, 30, operator pf the Hi Ho beer tavern at 419 2nd Ave. SE, was
killed Thursday night at 8:30 o'clock when a bicycle he was riding west of town on highway No. 30 was struck by a car bearing a California license. Maish's body was taken to Blairstown

County Sheriff Leland Fry permitted the bridal couple to continue enroute to Debuque after an investigation disclosed that a bicycle on which Maish was riding at the time of the accident carried no light.

Before their recent marriage in Detroit, the bride was Miss Mildred C. Kannolt of that city.

Friday, April 15, 2011

This week marks the 150th anniversary of the beginning of the Civil War. Growing up I was a history buff - European History. The Civil War never held my interest and seemed remote growing up in the northwest suburbs of Chicago. The extent of my knowledge was what I gleened from reading Gone with the Wind and later seeing the movie.

Civil War Research

During the course of my research I found that Chuck's family had multiple soldiers that fought in the Civil War. Their pension files and their widow's pension requests have given me a motherlode of information. I have found affidavits outlining marriages and divorces, unknown first wives and copies of certificates for marriages I never knew existed!

The pension files and war records have guided me to read about battles they fought and where some were held as prisoners. I have read about their injuries and how it affected their lives after the war. It took over forty years, but I am finally doing the required reading from my high school American history class!

Pension files, war records and such can be a bit dry. That is when some vintage movies and mini series can help round out the Civil War. While Gone with the Wind, The Blue and the Gray, North and South and Glory may not be documentaries but they can help you visualize the period, the agony of families divided and the loss of life.

Check out Netflix, Amazon or your local Red Box and watch some of the many movies about the Civil War. Be sure to include the kids and explain which of their ancestors may have fought or lived during this time period. It may be just the hook to get them interested in genealogy!

Tuesday, April 12, 2011

My family's genealogy has always been boring compared to most. There are no tales of Native Indian princesses or connections to Billy the Kid or Amelia Earhart, just plan German and Finnish folks.

A couple of years ago I was researching some connections in Canada and was leaving a lot of messages when a distant cousin and his wife contacted me. This couple was researching my mom's maternal Finnish line and had a lot of research to share. At the end of one email they asked if I knew that some of our cousins perished on the Titanic!

It seems that a cousin, Maria Emelia Ojala-Ketola (Panula) and her five children were third class passengers on the Titanic. While I found this interesting I did not give it much thought until recently.

Last weekend I was attending a seminar by Megan Smolenyak and one topic was DNA research. While discussing this fascinating but complicated topic Megan brought up the story of the "Titanic baby" that had been mis-identified in 2002. The baby was thought to be a Finnish child but later in 2007 was identified as an English child. When I got home I checked and sure enough it was Eina Panula, my cousin.

99 Year Anniversary

April 15 marks 99 years since the Titanic sank killing too many people. If you would like more information on the Titanic and its passengers check out these links. I will be thinking how my cousins boarded that ship with such high hopes and met such a terrible fate.

Saturday, April 9, 2011

Death Comes Suddenly
Lottie Maish Dies at Her Home Last Saturday From Apoplexy

The Blackduck American - February 13, 1918

Returning to her home from a shopping trip to the stores Saturday night, Miss Lottie Maish, the 16 year old daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Sherm Maish of this village, was taken with a violent coughing spell and before Dr. Koch who was summoned reached the Maish home she was beyond medical aid and died without regaining consciousness.

Deceased was born in Hornet Township August 11, 1901 and was the sixth of eleven children. She is mourned by her parents, eight sisters and two brothers.

The funeral which was largely attended was held from the Presbyterian church Monday afternoon, Rev. H. A. Kossack officiating.

Miss Maish had been in the best of health and it was only a few minutes before her death that she complained of not feeling well. It is believed that the bursting of a blood vessel caused her death.

Thursday, April 7, 2011

Everyone is always eager to learn about the newest search engine, online database or social networking site. But there it is, like that dependable sweater in the back of the closet Rootsweb.

A few years ago I spent a couple of long evenings posting messages and joining mailing lists trying to knock down some brick walls. I talked about it and the success I had in a blog posting called "Brickwalls, Rootsweb and Me" The great thing is that now, years later it is still paying off!

Today, out of nowhere I received an email that there as a new post on a mesage I had posted in 2007! Yes, another Maish cousin had found my message!

Rootsweb is the gift that keeps on giving. The message you leave today will still be there next week, next month and years from now. The important thing is to make sure that leave the message in the first place.

Monday, April 4, 2011

Too many times we think that genealogy research and family time do not mix. Granted, your son or daughter, niece or nephew or granchild may roll their eyes when you bring up visiting a cemetery, but what if you were going to visit a train museum or a working 19th century village?

I accidently came across Conner Prairie Interactive History Park last week and was blown away. Nestled just north of Indianapolis it takes the visitor back in time to experience living on a farm, candle making and opening June 2011 "1863 Civil War Journey - Rail on Indiana".

The great thing is the link in the upper right hand corner "Smithsonian Institution Affiliations Program". It takes you to the Smithsonian site where there is an interactive map of Smithsonian affiliated musuems and historical sites across the country.

It is easy to find a Smithsonian Affiliate, just pick a state or the type of museum you are interested in visiting.

All the settlers were Finns, except for Grant Goyle-an Irishman, John Spiegel-a German, and Lyn Blum-an Irish-German. They all learned to speak Finnish with hardly an accent, and did that ever mystify strangers. They had learned some of it already in the copper cities, where we first came to know them. They married Finnish-born girls and settle here. Their descendants are numerous. Those are about the most interesting things I can recall…"

Among the first comers, Anna Johnson was outstanding for her contribution to the community. She did everything except shoe horses and weld iron in the black-smith's shop. She tanned leather to make moccasins for the little ones, of whom she had 13 herself, raising 10 to man and womanhood. She was the community's only midwife for 40 years, attending 103 deliveries, and losing not a one.

Because her husband worked in the mines and lumber camps most of the time, she had to take full charge of the farm and her brood of children. She harnessed and hitched the horse to the harrow, and trudged in its wake. She sowed the grain from a dishpan, later with a hand driven seeder. She was the community nurse, calling Dr. Aldridge of Winona in the severe cases.

She was also the veterinarian. She spun wool and knitted garments, sewed the dresses for the little girls from store goods. There were innumerable other things made at home, for trips to town took three days through the forest, and once when the storekeeper made a delivery, it cost more than the goods did.

On that occasion, the wide-eyed storekeeper told Anna's friends in town how he found her soldering a dishpan, and of how she had "made the chimney longer." It seems the stovepipe chimney was too short, so Anna had raised the stove on blocks of wood.

Always, A Solution Was Found

She took hold of tragedy with a firm hand. Once, when one of her little daughters fell into the well, where there was 28 feet of water, she commanded that she be tied to the bucket and lowered into the well. This done, she grasped the child by the hair and drew her up in approved life-saving fashion. After several hours of artificial respiration, the youngster recovered.

While she was helping a neighbor, the eldest children, tho little more than knee high, were left in charge. Their cooking ability was limited, as was the larder, and the main dish and only one was a concoction of hot water poured on rye bread, with fried salt pork added, to be eaten with milk. It stopped the tears of the little ones, and they again waited patiently for mother to return.

She was always ready to help her neighbors, and everyone in Toivola was her neighbors, and everyone in Toivola was her neighbor. She did everything for a mere "thank you," never expected any more. She felt no sense of being a heroine, but because she had versatile ability and unquenchable energy, she lived up to the standards of that day. Those people had to work hard, do those things or go under.

Friday, April 1, 2011

On January 6 my blog entry was about researching in New Mexico. I am happy to pass on another great tip for researching in New Mexico.

My friend Pam Treme recently requested an obituary from a library in Clovis, New Mexico. It ended up that her request was to the wrong library, but an industrious librarian forwarded the request to the New Mexico State Library and voila the obituary was found.

Here is an explanation from the librarian, Terri, of the Clovis-Carver Library:

2. If the local library can’t find it in their collection, the library can forward your request to the state library to see if they can fulfill your request.

If the state library finds the obit, they forward a PDF to the local library, which can then be forwarded to you. In the case of the Clovis-Carver Public Library, the service is free as long as you are able to accept a PDF via email.

Always be sure to check with the library you are working with about any fees that may apply.